Meaning of 不曾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- hasn't yet; hasn't ever
How to use 不曾
不曾 is a slightly formal or written way to say 没有 before a verb when talking about past experience. It often appears with 过 (guo) after the verb. Example: 我不曾去过北京。(Wǒ bùcéng qùguo Běijīng.) I have never been to Beijing.
不 (bù) means "not" and 曾 (céng) means "once, at some time in the past." Put them together and you get "not once," which is "never" or "not yet."
Common mistake: Learners sometimes read 曾 as zēng, which is its pronunciation in 曾经 only as a surname or in words like 曾孙 (zēngsūn). In 不曾 it is always céng. Also, 不曾 negates past experience, so do not use it for future or habitual actions like "I don't eat meat."
不曾 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
不 bù · no · 4 strokes
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- 2
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- 4
曾 céng · once · 12 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 不曾.
| 对不起 | duìbuqǐ | I'm sorry; excuse me; I beg your pardon; to let (sb) down; to disappoint |
| 是不是 | shì bu shì | is or is not (used to form yes-no questions) |
| 不用 | bùyòng | need not |
| 不大 | bù dà | not very (clear, far away etc); not too; not often; infrequently |
| 不对 | bùduì | incorrect; wrong |
| 不客气 | bù kèqì | you're welcome; don't mention it |
| 不要 | bùyào | don't!; must not |
| 不过 | bùguò | only; merely |
| 不错 | bùcuò | correct; right |
| 不行 | bùxíng | won't do; be out of the question |
| 不同 | bù tóng | different; distinct |
| 不好意思 | bù hǎoyìsi | to feel embarrassed; to find it embarrassing |
Questions about 不曾
What does 不曾 mean?
不曾 (bùcéng) means "hasn't yet; hasn't ever" and is used as a adverb.
How do you write 不曾?
不曾 is made of 2 characters: 不 (4 strokes), 曾 (12 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 不曾 an HSK word?
Yes. 不曾 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 不曾 and 没有?
They mean about the same thing when talking about the past. 没有 is everyday spoken Chinese, while 不曾 sounds more literary and is common in writing, songs, and formal speech.
Is 不曾 the opposite of 曾经?
Yes. 曾经 (céngjīng) means "once did" or "have done before," and 不曾 means "have never done." For example, 我曾经见过他 (I once met him) versus 我不曾见过他 (I have never met him).